Vintage racers know all to well the difficulty there can be when it comes to finding appropriate tires for the race track, as the odd rim sizes of classic motorcycles are often outside the sizing parameters of good modern sticky tires. This leaves many racers using street-focused tires for their racing needs, but that could all come to an end, as Metzeler is expanding its Racetec RR Range to include 18-inch wheel sizes. Going forward from today’s announcement, the Metzeler Racetec RR DOT race tire will come in the company’s K1 compound (Metzeler’s softest compound), in the following sizes: 110/80-ZR18 (58W) front, and 150/65-ZR18(69W) & 160/60-ZR18 (70W) rear tires.

For reasons beyond our imagination and comprehension, the failed business experiment that was the Skully AR-1 helmet has been revived by new investors. Sending out a blast to the “Skully Nation” email list, the brand’s new owners Ivan and Rafael Contreras, have announced their plans to revive this seemingly dead project. One can barely fathom why someone would want to continue a project that so obviously was doomed to its own failure, and that also so grossly betrayed the goodwill of the motorcycle community; and yet, here we are, with Skully Technologies taking over where Skully, Inc. left off. The presumption of this news is that the new management hopes to bring the AR-1 helmet, with its heads-up display technology, to market.

The Nike Air Force 1 shoe is perhaps the most iconic piece of footwear ever created. It spurred an entire industry of sneakerheads – people who collect and trade shoes – and the Nike AF1 is one of the most collectible items for this genre of collector. So, it’s not surprising that there is industry buzz about a new Nike Air Force 1 being created. With each release, Nike has kept AF1 brand in line with its urban roots, where playing basketball on the street gave rise to young kids who would dream of following their heroes, like Michael Jordan, onto the courts of the NBA. Now having more of a cult following, Nike has been branching out with its AF1 offerings, and last month the sport brand debuted a special AF1, which pays tribute to Baltimore’s 12 O’Clock Boys.

Two labor unions have ended a partnership agreement with Harley-Davidson, citing differences with how the Bar & Shield brand handles staffing issues at its factories (Harley has been accused of replacing hourly union workers with temporary seasonal workers). The move comes after a meeting on Monday, which saw leaders from the International Association of Machinists & Aerospace Workers (IAM), United Steelworkers (USW), and Harley-Davidson President & CEO Matt Levatich unable to agree on how to handle staffing issues going forward. While the disagreement ends an accord that has existed between the unions and Harley-Davidson for the past two decades, it does not affect the collective bargaining agreement that the unions have with Harley-Davidson, which has been incorrectly reported elsewhere.

Say what you will about American politics, but the US House of Representatives has passed the “SELF-DRIVE Act” (H.R. 3388) – a bipartisan bill that would open up autonomous vehicle regulation for manufacturers. The big advantage of the SELF-DRIVE Act is that it would supersede the varying and ad hoc state rules that manufacturers must currently adhere to while developing their autonomous platforms. The bill would also do away with some safety standards put in place for vehicles with drivers, such as where the steering wheel and foot pedals must be located. Lastly, the SELF-DRIVE Act would require the Department of Transportation (DOT) to research and develop a way of conveying to consumers the level of automation a vehicle possesses.

In early 2016, I was fortunate enough to ride the revamped and Euro4 version of the MV Agusta Brutale 800. On paper, the Brutale 800 lost power and gained weight, but the reality is that MV Agusta improved upon already one of its best-selling machines, in subtle and clever ways. Now a year-and-a-half later, the 2017 MV Agusta Brutale 800 is finally available in the United States, and I have been reunited with one of the best street bikes on the market. Spending almost all of last month with this motorcycle again, it is clear that not much has changed from a rider’s perspective, though internally improvements have been made to some of the weaker elements of the design, like the sprag clutch and valve train. While not much has changed with this year’s edition of the MV Agusta Brutale 800, I am mostly fine with that.

What happened when Valentino Rossi crashed? How serious is his injury? When will he be back? Who will replace Rossi, if he doesn’t return at Aragon? And what does Yamaha think of Rossi’s training methods? Yamaha boss Lin Jarvis spoke to a small group of journalists at Misano on Saturday morning, to answer these questions and much more. Jarvis knew about the accident very shortly after it had happened. “I knew before he got to the hospital,” Jarvis told us. “Albi [Tebaldi] called Maio Meregalli as soon as he got the news that Vale was on the way to the hospital. Maio called me straight away.” The good news was that Rossi’s injury was not as bad as the last time he broke his leg, at Mugello in 2010. “It’s much less serious,” Jarvis told us, “but probably just as irritating.

While the launch of the Ducati’s Desmosedici Stradale V4 engine and leaked photos of the Ducati Panigale V4 dominated the news on Thursday, Aprilia Racing was quietly changing the sport of motorcycle racing, as it debuted an augmented reality helmet that its mechanics will wear in MotoGP. Aprilia has partnered with DAQRI and Realmore to make the augmented reality helmet come to fruition – DARQI is making the hardware, while Realmore is responsible for the software. As followers of augmented reality (AR) tech may already have guessed, Aprilia Racing’s AR helmet will allow its mechanics to visualize and share information, overlaid on what is occurring in the pit box. Aprilia Racing sees two major scenarios where using augmented reality could be of benefit.

Apparently today is Ducati Day, as news continues to come from Italy about the Ducati Panigale V4 and its Desmosedici Stradale engine. Ducati has already spilled the beans on the new 210hp V4 engine it has been developing for its next superbike, but now we also get more spy photos of the Panigale V4 that will carry it. These latest spy photos show quite clearly the 2018 Ducati Panigale V4 that will debut later this November, at the EICMA show in Milan. Ducati CEO Claudio Domenicali confirmed the Panigale V4 name today, and for our A&R Pro members, we have gone into a lengthy analysis as to why Ducati is choosing to keep the styling and name of this machine so similar to the previous model.

Hello and welcome to a new era of Ducati motorcycles, which is starting with a very special engine. Named the Desmosedici Stradale, this road-going version of the company’s MotoGP power plant is what is going to power Ducati’s next superbike, the Ducati Panigale V4. Debuting today in Misano, at a special event ahead of the San Marino GP, the mystery around the Desmosedici Stradale engine has finally be revealed, to the tune of 210hp (@ 13,000 rpm) and 88.5 lbs•ft of torque (@ 12,250 rpm). Dropping details on the 90° V4 engine with desmodromic valves, we now know that Ducati will continue to play the displacement game with its superbike, as the street version of the Panigale V4 coming with a 1,103cc displacement.

BMW Motorrad continues to have recall trouble during the 2017 riding season, this time the German brand is recalling 29,281 units from various models, for an issue with the optional aluminum luggage cases, which may block the view of the bikes’ rear reflectors.

BMW’s boxer-twin engine doesn’t lend itself to being a great platform for drag racing, but you have to admit that this is a handsome ride, even if it’s all show and no go.

With BMW filling every niche under the two-wheeled sun with its bikes though, we wouldn’t be that surprised to see the Germans follow-up with something similar to what the French designer has done here. After all, BMW Motorrad is rumored to be working on an XDiavel-killer, and then there’s…

The Digimoto concept is the creation of a collaboration between German designer Zanzotti, industrial design house GRAYDEV., and parts-maker Wunderlich.

The trio make a good pitch about how the Digimoto bike was made using virtual reality and other high-tech manufacturing buzzwords, but honestly we just like the simple lines that come from their creation.

Using a BMW R1200R as its basis, the minimalist and modern design is a unique take on the boxer twin. Disc wheels and fork shrouds add an aerodynamic flare to the machine, along with its clear swooping LED tail light.

The seat looks like a repurpose skateboard, and the headlight looks like a Daft Punk helmet to us; but the fuel tank has an interesting design, with the gap between it and the motor giving a sense of levitation.

One of the more interesting concepts on display at EICMA, it gives us something to chew on through the long motorcycle winter.

If you’ve been following BMW Motorrad’s worldwide recall of over 300,000+ motorcycles, for faulty rear-wheel mounting flanges; well the recall has finally hit American shores, affecting over 43,000 units.

The basic gist of the recall is that on the affected motorcycles, the rear wheel mounting flange may crack if the rear wheel mounting bolts are over-tightened. This would cause the rear wheel to come off the motorcycle, which would of course likely result in a crash.

BMW Motorrad USA will notify possibly affected owners, and BMW dealers will replace the existing aluminum rear wheel flange with a new steel one, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin April 21, 2015.

Concerned owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417, and as always the NHTSA is also available at 1-888-327-4236 and safercar.gov.

Though the addition of BMW’s water-cooled engine to the 2015 BMW R1200R was a move everyone saw coming down the pipe, the German company’s extensive style shift on the BMW R1200R was perhaps a move unexpected.

The classic looking roadster of before is now replaced with a more aggressive design — though perhaps not as aggressive as the BMW Roadster Concept that we saw earlier this year.

Still, the new BMW R1200R is a handsome machine that incorporates both mild-touring capability with a fun sporty ride. Since we had a tough time pulling images off BMW’s press site earlier this week, because of all the traffic from INTERMOT, here’s a “mega gallery” of 181 high-resolution images. Enjoy!

Using the same 125hp engine that powers the BMW R1200GS and BMW R1200RT, the new BMW R1200R makes more power, more linearly, than its predecessor, though keeps the old R1200R’s basic roadster look and feel intact.

09/15/2014 @ 11:41 am, by Jensen BeelerComments Off on BMW Confirms New S1000RR Will Debut at INTERMOT – Two More New Bikes to Debut at EICMA

We already know that BMW Motorrad has a bevy of new machines coming out for the 2015 model year, and now the Germans are ready to admit as much. Confirming that a new BMW S1000RR superbike will debut at the INTERMOT show, BMW has also teased that two more new models will also debut at EICMA.

From the spy photos that we obtained, we know that the 2015 BMW S1000RR features modestly updated bodywork, a restyled exhaust, and likely features a mild engine reworking. We will have to wait a couple more weeks to get the full details though, but expect a modest hp boost, semi-active suspension, and the Bosch MSC cornering-ABS system as standard — much like the BMW HP4.

As for the two new machines debuting in November at the EICMA show, BMW Motorrad is surely referring to the S1000XR adventure-tourer, which we have spied on several occassions, as well as the expected new water-cooled version of the R1200R.

We already told you that 2011 was BMW Motorrad’s best sales year ever, and that the BMW S1000RR topped the Bavarian brand’s charts here in the United States. Zie Germans must be feeling rather pleases with themselves right now (and rightfully so), as BMW has released more details about its all-time motorcycle sales record. Pushing out 104,286 units in 2011, BMW Motorrad was up 6.4% in 2011 over 2010, with each of the 2011’s twelve months outselling its 2010 counterpart. Toppling its previous sales record from 2007 (the height of the world economy), it says something about BMW’s current business strategy that it can best that figure in an economy that is still exceedingly weak in comparison.

It is interesting to note in which markets, and in which segments, BMW is finding this growth, because the answers are not necessarily our usual suspects. Basically doubling its worldwide 500+cc market share over the past four years, BMW now accounts for 12% of the worlds “big” displacement motorcycles by units sold per annum. This goes counter to the trend that we’ve seen, where small-displacement are being cast as the sales leaders for large brands (namely the Japanese Four).

Ahead of EICMA, BMW has released information on the 2011 BMW R1200R & 2011 BMW R1200R Classic street bikes (along with the 2011 BMW G650GS). Getting the R1200GS/R1200GT’s dual-overhead cam twin-cylinder boxer motor, the R1200R series gets a 500 RPM boost, more power (110hp), and more torque (87.77 lbs•ft) from the updated air-cooled 1170cc motor. Other minor updates include a more distinct old school style for the 2011 BMW R1200R Classic, while both bikes benefit from an increased stand pipe (41mm up from 35mm) on the front Telelever suspension.

Other subtle changes to the R1200R’s are the two-bolt configuration on the cylinder head, which used to have four bolts (breath-taking, we know). A shorter exhaust pipe is used with both bikes, with a brushed sleeve for the BMW R1200R, and chrome plated version for the BMW R1200R Classic. The 2011 BMW R1200R will get aluminum alloy wheels, while the 2001 BMW R100R Claissc will have alloy rims held to the bike via spoked hubs for that retro feel.

Both bikes can be fitted with the optional electronic suspension (ESA), which changes the R1200R’s rear pre-load with a touch of a button, anti-lock brakes (ABS), and automatic stability control (ASC). Our favorite touch though has to be the revised instrument cluster, which brings a classy look the bikes. Check out a whole mess of photos after the jump.

Bear with us as we try to get through the FOUR recalls that BMW has initiated, and dropped in our inbox. With a range of issues hitting its recent series of motorcycles, BMW has four individually registered recalls with the NHTSA that span 11 models in the German company’s stable. If you own a BMW manufactured between 2005 and 2009, you might want to check after the jump to see if your bike is affected. Click on the appropriate link to the NHTSA’s website for additional information.